The Marine Museum at Fall River is a cultural gem and contains a wealth of Fall River Maritime History especially Steam Ship and Titanic memorabilia. Discover the art, books, models and many treasures the Marine Museum holds. This is a must see
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The Marine Museum at Fall River is a cultural gem and contains a wealth of Fall River Maritime History especially Steam Ship and Titanic memorabilia. Discover the art, books, models and many treasures the Marine Museum holds. This is a must see resource for landlubbers and mariners alike.

Carol Gafford is a public librarian, family historian, amateur archivist and book savior. She is currently the youth services/outreach librarian at the Swansea Public Library and volunteers for several museum and historical societies including the Marine Museum at Fall River, the Swansea Historical Society and the Bristol Historical and Preservation society. She is the editor of Past Times, the Massachusetts Society of Genealogists and is always looking for a new project to take on.

For the first time at this year’s U.S. Open, Serena Williams’ opponent made her work hard for more than a couple of games. Boy, did she have to work.

Victoria Azarenka proved to be a worthy opponent for two tough, tight sets in New York. She pushed Serena around the court and made her look sloppy at times. But this match showcased one key point in women’s tennis – it is really hard to win two sets against Serena Williams, who won her fifth U.S. Open and 17th major, 7-5 6-7 6-1, in an exciting three-hour match.

Before the championship, Serena had dropped all of 16 games in six matches. Sunday, she lost 13. To be fair, it wasn’t all Azarenka, as the wind wreaked havoc with Serena, who was effected more by the conditions and had a mountain of mishits and unforced errors, especially in that second set.

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That second set was one unlike Serena has perhaps ever played. Usually a great frontrunner, Serena was in position to coast to a championship, up a set and two breaks. Then Azarenka got one of the breaks back. And when Serena served for the championship, she didn’t even get to match point, as Azarenka broke again to remarkably get back on serve. Momentum swing to Azarenka, right? Wrong. She was immediately broken to give Serena the chance to serve it out again. Momentum swing to Serena, right? Wrong. Serena again didn’t get to match point, dropping serve for the second time in a row. Momentum swing to Azarenka, right? Wrong. She fell down 4-1 in the tiebreaker, three points from losing. It was nearly 5-1, but Azarenka correctly challenged a close out call that was reversed. It’s over, right? Wrong. Serena again got tight and Azarenka got tough and closed out the tiebreaker, 8-6.

Momentum shift to Azarenka, right? Wrong. Serena won six of the next seven games to win the championship, showcasing some of her best and hardest serves and groundstrokes of the match.

This match displayed some great mental toughness on both sides – Azarenka to stay in the match when she was way down in the second and Serena to turn it around in the third after blowing three great chances to put it away. For most players, that 6-1 scoreline in the third would be how they lost. But at least for Azarenka, this final wasn’t as heartbreaking as last year’s, when she served for the championship against Serena and didn’t win another game the rest of the match.

This was a valiant effort on both sides. For Serena, it solidifies her position as the best player in the game and perhaps the greatest of all time. For Azarenka, it won her new fans – a difficult task playing in New York against an American. And for the two, it’s a great chapter in a new rivalry.